Inferno
by xXxThe Phantom's RosexXx
Summary: The BAU team investigates the vicious murders of four children, but the case takes some very unexpected terns - especially when Derek Morgan gets taken hostage and the team is forced to continue their case without him.
1. Chapter 1

**Inferno **

**Author's Note: Okay, one thing about me is that when I find something I like, I obsess like crazy. It was like that the first time I became a fan of Criminal Minds. Unfortunately, L&O:SVU comes on the same time Criminal Minds does, and that took precedent. Well, I saw the episode, Penelope again, and fell in love all over again, with Criminal Minds, and with Derek Morgan. So here I go, continuing my obsession, writing a Criminal Minds chapter fic. The last one I wrote didn't go anywhere, but I promise, I have big plans for this one. Enjoy!**

**Disclaimer: I do not own Criminal Minds, or the characters. If someone would please, please, please give me Derek Morgan for my birthday (on Saturday), I think I would love you for the rest of our lives! Face it, who wouldn't want him dressed only in a big, red bow on his head? Mmm, I like that mental picture. Okay, enough creepy fangirl fantasies – time to get crackin' on this story! Whoo-hoo!**

[1]

JJ sat at the familiar desk, stacked high with files upon files of pictures of the dead, the missing. They were like shadows, fleeting, invisible and yet, constantly present. They followed her like a constant nagging that would not subside. Seeing the faces of the invisible caused her pain, no matter how hard she tried to fight it. Each time they would meet for a briefing, she always entered the conference room a little more weary, and a little more worn. It was a hard job, they all knew that; but it was what they did. Besides, they were the heroes. Sometimes. Most times. Not enough of the time.

She grabbed one of the files from her mountain and headed into the conference room where the rest of the team waited. She was late. Again. It was a bad habit of hers, coming in late to these briefing meetings; but she felt as if looking at their files a little bit longer, lingering over them, soaking in the death-facts like sunlight, helped her be more prepared.

"You're late," Hotch noted. He wouldn't let her slide. His jaw was clenched, but he didn't push the matter. Agent Hotchner was not unfamiliar with the difficulty of their job. He understood her eyes being a little moist, and her cheeks a little red. He understood the shaky voice and hands. They were his too.

"Sorry," JJ blushed, setting the file to the table, and flipping it open. She lifted some Polaroid's that had been taken at the crime scenes, and scattered them before the members of the Behavior Analysis Unit. They each looked at the photographs, and recoiled.

The analyst in her kicked in. Hotch looked at his photograph, and blinked. No movement. Stoic. Emily Prentiss looked at hers, and put it back down, as if it had burned her hands. Unable to look. Reid squinted, and put the picture on the table. Morgan looked at his, and shook his head.

"Someone wanted to cause someone an awful lot of hurt," he said, still looking at his as if he were unable to turn away. He also knew the shaky voice, shaky hands. He knew the shock and nausea that came with the job.

"Mia Angelo, Audrey Sorento, Cindy Loras, and Jessica Samuels. Mia was our first victim. She went missing about a month ago when she didn't come home from school. Audrey, Cindy, and Jessica were next. They were logged into Missing Person's but the cases came up with no leads…until now. A mudslide in Tallulah, Texas unearthed their bodies – or at least what was left of them. Someone had dismembered the bodies with what is recorded as an axe."

"Any significant leads?" Hotch asked, looking at the photographs laying scattered on the table.

"No. All the girls went missing, each from walks home – school, friends' houses, the park. It's a small town. The families aren't used to this kind of thing. We need to get down there and figure this thing out. Four girls, four bodies, four sets of parents who want answers. We need to give them those answers. We need to find who is doing this."

"And talk with the townspeople," Reid added, "make them realize that they need to keep their kids inside, no one goes out after dark, and no one walks home alone. Not even in groups. The schools need to be contacted."

"No child will go home without a parent or guardian as an escort," Emily nodded in agreement, "So let's roll."

"Not that easy," JJ raised a hand, "We have no suspects, no leads. I've contacted the sheriff and he said they don't even know where to start. They are so unprepared for this kind of thing. We don't have any starts. We will be going down there with nothing."

"We know," Hotch intervened, "that we have four dead girls and a psychopath on our hands. That's more than enough. Load up and head out. We leave in twenty."

JJ packed up the pictures and looked at the team, all of them were packing up their things and heading out to their office cubicles. JJ returned to her office, snagged a picture of the baby off her desk, and shoved it into her bag. She headed to the lockers, and met up with Emily.

"How you holding up?" Emily asked.

"It could be him," JJ said, pointing to the picture of her baby that was Scotch-Taped to her locker door, "It could be anyone we know – one day."

"Don't think like that," Emily shook her head, shoving some clothes into a duffle, "They are victims that need answers, we will give them to them."

"But they are more than just victims – they are people. Human beings, souls."

"I know," Emily nodded, swinging the bag onto her shoulder. She hadn't been in the BSU long, but she knew. She understood just as well as the others did that sometimes, work doesn't end when the case does. There's always that question – it could have been a loved one, my loved one. She tried not to think like that, but it was unavoidable, "I have an eight year old niece," she said, "I see her in those pictures."

The women grabbed their things and headed out. More dead bodies, more lost souls. They needed to give answers. It was their job. Someone had to do it.

Derek Morgan loaded his duffle with Reid at his side. Neither really knew what to say. Derek was tough, tougher than most, but when it came to kids, he was soft. They all saw the soft side he had tucked away – saved for a few lucky ones. He would give his life for another at any given second. It was what made him a good Agent, a good analyst. His passion kept him going, kept him sane.

"You ready for this?" Spencer Reid asked.

"Why did it have to be kids, huh? Little girls?"

"We can't control our victims, Morgan. We get what we get."

"I know. It's just…"

"Difficult. I know," Spencer nodded. They didn't think he understood. He seemed almost stoic, unable to show much emotion, but he felt the same pain they did, his heart grieved for those little girls, "But we will put this guy away, like usual."

"Usual aint always."

Reid grabbed his duffle and nodded to the door.

"Go on. I'll be out in a second."

Reid did as he was told. Derek sat down at the bench in front of the locker, and put his head in his hands. After saying a silent prayer, and giving the silver cross hung around his neck a quick kiss, he also grabbed his bag, and headed out the door. Prayer and strength, it was all that could keep him together during this case.

"Hey!" Penelope Garcia, the BSU computer analyst bounded up towards him, "Keep me in the loop, alright?"

"Wouldn't be able to solve this case if you weren't, baby girl," Derek grinned, loving the fact that she could make him smile whenever the world seemed to crumble around him.

"Be safe."

"No promises."

"Try."

Derek rolled his eyes, but smiled, "Be good."

"Or what?"

"Just…behave," he lifted her hand to his lips and kissed it. He adored Garcia, and would gladly stop at nothing to protect her. She was his and he was hers. No one questioned it. It just…was. Of course they weren't romantically involved, but they did love each other. It was just how they were.

Together, the team headed out the doors and to the plane. It was another case, another day.

Their _job_.


	2. Chapter 2

**Author's Note: Thanks for the reviews! It means so much to me, really. Like you have no idea. It means the world to me. It's the Morgan to my Garcia and the Dork to my Reid. Also, extra points to whoever can tell me the Firefly reference I snuck in here hehe :) **

**[2]**

"_A warrior considers himself already dead, so there is nothing to lose. The worst has already happened to him, therefore he's clear and calm; judging him by his acts or by his words, one would never suspect that he has witnessed everything" - __Carlos Castaneda_

"I can honestly say, from the photos and from what we have, that our unsub doesn't like crowds. He is most likely shy, quiet, keeps to himself. He could probably very well handle a group of kids walking home together, but the thought scares him. He is terrified of a lot of people. One is enough for him. That shows signs of weakness and insecurity. He wants something he can control and, if there are more than one, it can get out of his control, out of his grasp. He needs to be in charge and have predictability," Reid announced, not being able to stand the silence that currently engulfed the airplane.

"We will find out more once we talk with our sheriff," Hotch said, staring out the airplane window, "When we get there, we will go there first. We need to talk with him and see the bodies. We also need to talk with the parents and find out about these girls' habits – did they tend to stray off the paths? Did they know not to go up to strangers? Is there any reason they might have gone with an abductor?"

JJ was looking at the picture of her son when Reid sat down next to her. He cocked his head to the side, and stared intently at the picture at the baby. It seemed like just yesterday he had held that little thing in his arms against his will. He hadn't wanted to hold him, he had no paternal instincts at all, but he held that baby and he never knew his heart could swell to that size. For a split second, he wished that child was his. For a split, fleeting second that dissipated as quickly as it had come.

"I think sometimes," JJ looked up towards Reid, "what if it were him?"

"Then we would do what we have always done," Reid didn't really know what to do. He was always so awkward and socially inept, but he patted JJ's shoulder, "You will be alright. You're strong."

"But how strong?"

"Strong enough."

The plane eased into the landing, as if it were a knife cutting through butter. It was simple and clean –precise. If only the case could be so easy.

The black SUV was waiting for them as they left the tarmac. After climbing inside, they made their way towards the sheriff's office. Such a small town had no need for a big police taskforce. Instead, all Tallulah had was a single sheriff and a deputy.

"Seems a bit like Mayberry," Emily Prentiss said, absentmindedly as the SUV headed down the dirt road. Mud caked the once-green hills and seemed a little disheartening, "I mean the small town, only two law enforcers."

"You call Fife a law enforcer?" Morgan grunted, "What'd he enforce?"

"Slapstick?" Reid offered.

Despite the seemingly light note, the team knew they would have their work cut out of them. The SUV pulled into the gravel parking lot of the sheriff's office and they hopped out, slamming the doors shut behind them.

"Sheriff Williamson?" JJ asked, "I spoke to you on the phone?"

"Ah, yes. Thank you for coming. I am glad you're here. Tallulah needs ya – we're not cut out for this kinda thing."

"Four girls go missing and you come up with no leads until they are all found dead, a month after the first goes missing?" Reid asked.

"Don't say we weren't trying, son. We just didn't have anything to go on. No one here in Tallulah would do somethin' like this. This is down right cruel. Those poor little girls," the sheriff shook his head in disbelief, "Jessi Samuels was last to go, but the coroner examined the bodies. Said they all died at the same time but taken weeks of each other."

"He's keeping a collection," Hotch noted.

"And yet can't take on a crowd," Reid reminded, "May we come in and look at your files?"

"Of course," Sheriff Williamson nodded, "I sent most of what we had but things have been hectic here. We just never 'of seen something so horrible here. Worst we got is traffic violations, maybe a skipped water bill – other than that, nothing. We aren't some big city here. We're not used to big city crime."

"Do you think the person committing these murders is someone from around here?" Hotch asked, following the sheriff into the small, brick building. It reminded him of a post office. Once inside, earlier Mayburry speculations had proven true – there was just a single jail cell.

"Well I know most everyone in this town. It's a family sort 'a place, you know. I know most people and their grandparents here. I see these kids grow up, get married, and have kids 'a their own. It's tough to think that someone I know can be doin' this, but I am not about to cross out options because I don't favor them much."

He handed JJ a stack of four files – one for each girl. As she began to flip through the pages, she kept shaking her head. It was unbelievable that someone could do such a horrible thing, but she had seen such monstrosity in the past – it was her job. Not to say that she was used to it. Every case was just as shocking as her first. There was no way she could allow herself to become desensitized.

"Each girl was taken on their way home from either the park, school, or a friend's house. They all knew each other – there's only one elementary school here in Tallulah and they are all about the same age. Not that they were close or anything, only two of them were real close friends. They were taken at different times – a week apart almost – but all died the same day according to the medical examiner."

"Perhaps," Reid offered, "he got scared off. He thought you were on to him and decided to dispose of the bodies. You said you had no leads at all?"

"Well," Sheriff Williamson blushed, "we had one. There's a kid, he's always been a problem child. I'd hate to think that he would do something like this, but he did give me a bad feeling. His name is Clarke Daniels. He has two counts as being a peeping-tom, but that was back when he was a teenager. Teen boys will be mischievous."

"That's no excuse for invading privacy," Emily added, "What else do you know about Clarke?"

"He was an odd child. His mother moved here when he was four, escaping an abusive husband who died a few towns over of a farming accident. The kid went through some counseling at his school, but he never was quite…right. When he was a kid, he kicked his neighbor's dog to death…"

"Hardly a lovely child," JJ rolled her eyes, "Didn't you know that killing of animals is a sign of a future serial killer? It's a red flag…"

"I know," Williamson nodded, "But if you could just have seen this kid…his dad had been a real piece of work. He had been through hell and back before his fifth birthday. It was a tragic story, really. And he had such a sweet face. Beautiful blue eyes, looking like a little angel."

"Angel with a devil-streak," Morgan scoffed.

"We have talked to his mother. She didn't know anything."

"Did you talk to Daniels yourself?" Hotch pressed.

"Not really," Williamson admitted, "He works with a forest-clearing team called Green-Lite. I called his boss, he told me he was out on a job about three miles in. We're a huge forest town, mind you. Lumber is the business here and the forests are lush. Our workers are gone for days at a time."

Reid asked, "Is it certain he was on his job? Is there a way the boss could have been mistaken?"

"Well, I guess. I didn't want to press it right away."

"It's been a month and four girls are dead!" Hotch snapped, frustrated with the sheriff.

"I…I just don't know how to handle this…"

"Go do something useful," JJ ordered, "and get the families of these kids up here as soon as possible. Also, get a hold of Daniels. We got to talk to him."

"I will," Sheriff Williamson said, going towards the phone, a kicked puppy.

Morgan whipped out his cell, "I'm calling Garcia. She can get us some more info on this kid. Hello? Garcia? Sexy god of crime-fighting? That's a new one. Work your magic, baby girl. I need you to get me all you can on a Mr. Clarke Williamson. Yeah. He's a little sicko, I know. Well, thank you baby. Oooh don't push your luck, alright? Behave."

"What'd she say?" Reid asked, curiously.

"Well, she called me a sexy god of crime-fighting," Morgan smirked, earning himself a disapproving glance from Hotch, "and she told me basically what our sheriff said – he was abused when he was a baby, moved here when he was four, his father died in a farming accident, he has two accounts of peeping, kicked his neighbor's dog to death – little freak – and he had a few run-ins at school. His record said he got caught fighting three times in a year back in freshman year. Now, he's out of high school and working on the tree-clearing team. After this mudslide, they have a lot of work on their hands. She also said something that our sheriff seemed to leave out."

"What's that?"

"Our Mr. Creepy-Dog-Kicker was the one that reported finding the bodies."

"Hmm, seems as if Williamson's memory failed."

"Also, what's creepy is he reported the bodies to the local paper, _not _the police. After the reporters mucked around the dump-sight, the police were notified."

"Well that's weird."

"Anything else?" Hotch asked.

"She told me that she'd like to peep in on me sometime, preferably while I was naked enjoying a warm bubble bath."

"Oh God!" Hotch recoiled, staring at Morgan as if he had just sprouted a third head, "I _can't_ know that!"

"Mental picture!" Reid shuttered, earning himself a punch to the shoulder.

"Guys," JJ interrupted, "We got more important things to worry about than Morgan in a bubble bath, remember? Let's just focus on this case and less on mental pictures of a sudsy Morgan, alright?"

"I could stand to hear a bit more," Prentiss smirked playfully at Morgan who grinned back at her.

"Well, I try."

"Try less to be sexy and more to solve this case," Reid suggested.

"Did you just…you just called me sexy!"

"I-I didn't say that," Reid stuttered, trying to recover his blunder, "I s-simply n-noted what I have heard from Garcia and others. It wasn't a suggestion that _I_ thought you were…um…sexy."

"Uh-huh. Who's '_others_?'"

"Prentiss."

"Shut up!" Emily spat out at him, "_God_!"

"You think I'm sexy?" Morgan nudged her playfully.

"Oh shut up, as if _you _don't think you're sexy."

"Well, I do work out…"

"Okay!" Hotch shouted, "Focus people. We still have four chopped up girls found in the mud. I think we have more important things we need to be concentrating on."

And it was true. As much as they enjoyed their banter, there were dead girls that needed answers. It was time to get back out there and face those pictures tucked away messily in those files. Dismembered girls, peeping toms, possible serial killers – it was all part of the business.

The business was murder.

The job description was solving it.

And the cases would stay with them until the day they took their last breath.


End file.
